Whitehorse man missing after saving son from river

Whitehorse RCMP are searching for acity man who fell into the Yukon River after rescuing his young son from drowning.

Benji Correos, 45, jumped into the river around 5 p.m. PT Thursday when his seven-year-old son Miles, who was playing nearby, slipped and fell into the high and rushing waters.

Both were pulled under the current, which has been very strong this year due tounprecedented high water levels. Two other men in the vicinity jumped in to try and save the pair. They were able to reach the boy and brought him to shore but the father was swept away.

"This is a father that gave his life for his son, and a stranger who almost gave his life to rescue this boy," Charles Pugh, a close friend of the Correos family, told CBC News on Friday.

Pugh said based on accounts of what happened, "Miles seemed to float almost on top of the water. And what we think happened is that Benji was pushing him up all the time and exhausted himself doing that.

"So, as far as we understand, he basically played a critical role in keeping his son alive until it was, you know, too late for him," he said.

Miles Correos was rushed to Whitehorse General Hospital but his conditionhad not been made public by Friday afternoon.

RCMP spent the evening searching the river forthe seniorCorreos using boats, an airplane, a helicopter and officers on foot.

Whitehorse's Filipino community, of which Correos was a member, is gathering Friday night to supportCorreos'sfamily.

Yvonne Clark, president of the Canadian Filipino Association of the Yukon, told CBC News that her group is also organizing its own search party along the Yukon River, with the help of a seasoned searcher.

RCMP say they cannot stop anyone from conducting their own search, but warned that the riverbanks are quite eroded and unstable. They advise volunteers to stay away from the river, or wear a lifejacket if they are walking near the shore.